Fossil Hominins: New Fossils of Australopithecus sediba

Fossil Hominins
Name
Course Code
Date
Article Metadata
This journal article is ‘New fossils of Australopithecus Sediba reveal a nearly complete lower back.’ It was published by eLife journal in November 2021. It is authored by several researchers affiliated with various research institutions around the world. It was reviewed by Min Zhu of the Chinese Academy of Sciences, China. The journal lists 17 authors affiliated with 18 research institutions. The first author, Scott A. Williams, is affiliated with the Center for the Study of Human Origins, Department of Anthropology, New York University, New York, United States, Centre for the Exploration of the Deep Human Journey, University of the Witwatersrand, Johannesburg, South Africa, and Department of Anthropology, Texas A&M University, College Station, United States. All the other authors have similar affiliations. Concisely, all the authors are researchers with reputable anthropological research experience and are affiliated with leading institutions in the subject area.
Article Summary
The article discusses a newly discovered lumbar vertebrae that contribute to more knowledge of the bipedalism and arboreal abilities of the Malapa Hominin (MH2). It gives insight into the posture and locomotion of the Australopithecus Sediba. The newly discovered lumbar vertebrae show that the MH2 possesses a lower back consistent with bipedalism. The article describes the evidence the vertebrae have that shows that this bone has the features of bipedal mammal, i.e., wider intervertebral articular facets. The MH2 was an intermediate in shape between modern humans and great apes. The researchers concluded that A. Sediba used its lower back for bipedal and arboreal position behaviors as suggested by existing literature regarding the evolution to bipedalism from arboreal positions.
How this article contributes to our understanding of human origins
This article contributes greatly to the understanding of human origins. It helps bridge the gap between the apes and humans, showing the switch between arboreal behavior to bipedalism. The width of the lumbar vertebrae coupled with the age of the fossil gives a glimpse into when this switch happened and other related information about the evolution of modern man. For example, the article describes the fossil to bear long cranially and ventrally oriented costal (traverse) processes which imply powerful trunk musculature. This leads to the conclusion that there was a period where the early man switched from arboreal behavior to bipedalism. How this research qualifies as a science